My marathons

Bucharest Marathon

Run on 11 October 2026. Next race: date not out yet. Bucharest
Palace of the Parliament
Palace of the Parliament. Photograph by Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons

The course

The marathon starts on Bulevardul Libertății beside Izvor Park and finishes in Piața Constituției, on a certified, fully asphalted circuit marked at every kilometre.

The course in short 2 lines
  • Izvor to Piața ConstituțieiStart on Bd. Libertății by Parcul Izvor, finish in Piața Constituției; certified, all asphalt.
  • Six hours, water every five kilometres09:00 start with the relay and half, a 6 h limit, water at 5 km and every 5 km after, then at the finish.
Course notes 2 short reads on the course
Whole courseFinishIzvor to Piața ConstituțieiStart on Bd. Libertății by Parcul Izvor, finish in Piața Constituției; certified, all asphalt.

The organiser’s marathon page gives the start as “Bd. Libertății, în dreptul Parcului Izvor” and the finish as “Piața Constituției”. It describes the circuit as “certificat AIMS/IAAF”, “complet asfaltat și marcat la fiecare km”. In 2026 the race kits were collected in Piața Constituției on the Thursday, Friday and Saturday before.

Sourced

Whole courseConditionsSix hours, water every five kilometres09:00 start with the relay and half, a 6 h limit, water at 5 km and every 5 km after, then at the finish.

For the 2026 edition the programme lists “START Cursa 42km, Stafeta si 21km” at 09:00: one gun for the marathon, the 4x relay and the half marathon. The marathon page gives “Timp limită : 6 ore de la startul oficial”, after which, in the organiser’s words, the roads are reopened to traffic and the organisers no longer guarantee participants’ safety.

On hydration the page says there will be one point every 5 km under the IAAF/AIMS rule, “deci la aproximativ Km 5/10/15/20/25/30/35/Sosire”: at about km 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35 and at the finish. Six hours over 42.195 km is 8:32 per kilometre.

Registration is not taken on the day: “nu se mai pot face înscrieri în ziua cursei”.

Sourced

Race fuel

Energy gel
An energy gel sachet
Illustration · drag to turn

5 gels for Bucharest, plus 1 spare

Finish

One every 40 minutes, by the clock:

  1. km 7mile 4.4
  2. km 14.1mile 8.7
  3. km 21.1mile 13.1
  4. km 28.1mile 17.5
  5. km 35.2mile 21.8

Our pick: SiS BETA Fuel gel, box of 6, strawberry and lime. 40 g of carbohydrate a gel, about twice a usual gel, from two kinds of sugar your body takes up side by side.

Easy to forget on race morning: pack them with your bib the night before.

Get it on Amazon

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In Canada the button opens GU Energy Gel, Salted Caramel, 24-pack, the best seller there.

Outside the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Austria and Switzerland, the UK and Ireland, Spain and Portugal, Italy, the rest of the EU and Canada the button opens GU Energy Gel, Chocolate Outrage, 24-pack on Amazon.com, the best seller there.

Anti-chafe
Compeed Anti-blister stick
Photo: Compeed

Compeed

Compeed anti-blister stick, 8 ml

Best selling on Amazon amazon.nl, read 2 Nov

An invisible layer before the start keeps seams, straps and shoes from rubbing skin raw.

Put it on before you leave for the start: heels and toes, inner thighs, under a bra or heart-rate strap.

Try it on a long run first, like everything you use on race day.

Get it on Amazon

We earn a small fee if you buy through these links. The price is the same.

Number belt
A race number belt
Illustration · drag to turn

Compressport Race Belt

Holds your bib without safety pins through your top, with loops for up to 8 gels.

Clip the bib on the night before, so it goes on with your shorts in the morning.

Keep the number on the front, where officials and photographers can see it.

Get it on Amazon

We earn a small fee if you buy through these links. The price is the same.

Electrolytes
A tube of electrolyte tablets
Illustration · drag to turn

SiS Hydro electrolyte tablets, tube of 20

One tablet in a bottle puts back some of the salt you sweat out.

One tablet in 500 ml of water in the hour before the start.

Only if you have used them in training: nothing new on race day.

Get it on Amazon

We earn a small fee if you buy through these links. The price is the same.

Blister plasters
Compeed Blister plasters, medium, 6
Photo: Compeed

Compeed

Compeed blister plasters, medium, 6

Best selling on Amazon amazon.nl, read 2 Nov

One in a pocket cushions a blister if one starts.

Put it on clean, dry skin and leave it until it comes off by itself.

Give a couple to whoever comes to cheer, so they are there at the km you need them.

Get it on Amazon

We earn a small fee if you buy through these links. The price is the same.
distance
42.2 km26.2 mi
cut-off
6:00 h

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